Medical and Health Sensor Solutions

As the key to collecting data, sensors not only play an important role in industrial and electronic equipment, but also in the medical industry. In the medical field, various physical, chemical, and biological sensors are designed and manufactured into equipment and instruments to measure and collect various physiological indicators of the human body.

Sensors are widely used in the medical industry and are very important. Their applications can greatly improve the safety, reliability, and stability of medical equipment. In medical equipment related industries, they mainly involve pressure, flow, temperature and humidity, infrared, oxygen and other sensors, common applications include respiratory equipment, anesthesia equipment, diagnostic monitoring equipment, etc.

Take the sensors related to medical equipment used in the new crown epidemic as an example:

◆ Thermometers that take temperature on the forehead or wrist use infrared sensors;

◆ High-precision differential pressure sensors will be used in the air control system of hospital offices and wards;

◆ Temperature and humidity sensors are indispensable for the production, storage and transportation of vaccines and medicines.

Inventory of commonly used sensors in the medical field

01 Infrared thermopile sensor

The thermopile sensor is the core component of the forehead temperature gun. It has the characteristics of high cost performance, long service life, fast response speed, and high precision. The NTC chip in it helps the infrared thermopile to obtain more accurate measurement data during temperature monitoring.

Mainly used for: non-contact temperature measurement; non-contact measurement of infrared body temperature such as ear temperature and forehead temperature; and temperature measurement and control of household appliances (microwave ovens, hair care hair dryers, air conditioners, etc.); human body presence detection;

02 MEMS flow sensor

The flow sensor can measure or adjust the flow rate of gas or liquid in the pipe, and has the characteristics of high precision, fast response, good repeatability, and can accurately measure very small flow.

It is mainly used in intensive care ventilators, portable ventilators, portable instruments, air and environmental protection, industrial process control, etc.

03 Medical oxygen sensor

The number of people infected with the new coronavirus worldwide has exceeded 3 million, and the epidemic has spread to every corner of the world. Pulmonary fibrosis in severe virus patients leads to dyspnea, and critically ill patients cannot even breathe spontaneously. As one of the main medical devices for treatment, the ventilator can prevent respiratory failure and reduce complications, and is the main tool for delaying the life of patients and treating them. The flow sensor is one of the key components of the ventilator. By detecting the gas flow in the ventilator and converting it into other output signals, the automatic regulation of the ventilator is realized. The ultrasonic oxygen sensor can accurately monitor the oxygen produced by the oxygen generator by detecting the oxygen concentration and flow rate.

04 MEMS pressure sensor

Pressure sensors play an important role in pathological examination of medical patients and monitoring of minimally invasive surgery. Arterial blood pressure, intracranial pressure, and intrapulmonary pressure are all important parameters in the medical process. In addition, the monitoring, treatment, and health care required for medical care are inseparable from the accurate measurement of pressure sensors.

In addition to sophisticated medical and surgical facilities, medical supplies such as electronic sphygmomanometers that are commonly used in daily life also use pressure sensors to achieve autonomous real-time measurement.

05 Ozone sensor

The advanced oxidation process with ozone as the core can efficiently inactivate viruses, and finally ozone is decomposed into oxygen. It is a safe, green and environmentally friendly disinfection technology for the disinfection of new coronaviruses.

Ozone is often used for disinfection and purification in medical fields such as operating rooms, disposal rooms, infectious disease areas, burn and scald wards, waiting areas, and hospital toilets. (There is also ozone residual monitoring in the space after disinfection~)

06 MEMS breath sensor

About 80% to 90% of breath is related to oral diseases, and the direct source is a part of bacteria in the mouth, which decomposes food residues and produces volatile sulfides (VSCs), which are also the main components of breath.

The causes of bad breath are complex, but the main component of bad breath is usually hydrogen sulfide (H2S) gas. Through the detection of bad breath, it is possible to discover the related diseases that may exist in the patient.

07 Flexible pressure sensor

The flexible pressure sensor is based on a new type of nano pressure-sensitive material supplemented with a comfortable Young's modulus ultra-thin film substrate, which has dual functions of waterproof and pressure sensitivity.

When the external pressure is sensed, the resistance value of the sensor changes, and a simple circuit can make the sensor convert the pressure signal into an electrical signal output with a corresponding change in intensity after sensing the pressure change. It is mainly used in smart breathing belts, smart anti-snoring pillows, smart insoles, smart gloves, and smart helmets.